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SWAPO’s Struggle Children and Exile Home-Making: the Refugee Biography of Mawazo Nakadhilu

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 October 2020

Christian A. Williams Open the ORCID record for Christian A. Williams [Opens in a new window]
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Abstract:

Mawazo Nakadhilu is a former refugee born to a Namibian father and a Tanzanian mother near Kongwa, Tanzania, in 1972. Her biography illuminates how people have made homes in Southern African exile and post-exile contexts. Williams traces Mawazo’s story from her Tanzanian childhood through her forced removal to SWAPO’s Nyango camp to her “repatriation” to Namibia. In so doing, he highlights tensions that have not previously been addressed between exiled liberation movements and their members over family situations. Moreover, he stresses the value of biographical work focused on aspects of refugees’ lives that tend to be overlooked in nationalist discourse.

Résumé:

Résumé:

Mawazo Nakadhilu est un ancien réfugié né d’un père namibien et d’une mère tanzanienne près de Kongwa, en Tanzanie, en 1972. Sa biographie met en lumière la façon dont les gens ont fait leurs résidences dans des contextes d’exil et post-exil en Afrique australe. Williams retrace l’histoire de Mawazo depuis son enfance tanzanienne à travers son renvoi forcé au camp de Nyango de la SWAPO jusqu’à son « rapatriement » en Namibie. Ce faisant, il met en évidence les tensions qui n’ont pas encore été abordées entre les mouvements de libération en exil et leurs membres sur les situations familiales. En outre, il souligne la valeur du travail biographique axé sur des aspects de la vie des réfugiés qui ont tendance à être négligés dans le discours nationaliste.

Resumo:

Resumo:

Mawazo Nakadhilu é uma antiga refugiada, nascida em 1972 perto de Kongwa, Tânzânia, filha de pai namibiano e de mãe tanzaniana. A sua biografia ilustra o modo como as pessoas criaram os seus lares em contextos de exílio e pós-exílio na África do Sul. Williams acompanha a história de Mawazo desde a sua infância na Tanzânia até ao “repatriamento” para a Namíbia, passando pela deslocação forçada para o campo de refugiados Nyango, sob a alçada da SWAPO. Deste modo, coloca a ênfase nas tensões, nunca antes abordadas, que se verificam entre os movimentos de libertação no exílio e os seus membros em torno de situações relacionadas com a família. Além disso, Williams sublinha o valor do trabalho biográfico centrado nos aspetos da vida dos refugiados que são tendencialmente descurados pelo discurso nacionalista.

Keywords

exilerefugeesbiographySWAPOliberation movementschildrenfamilyhomeNamibiaTanzania
Type
Forum: African Refugee History
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 63 , Issue 3 , September 2020 , pp. 593 - 615
Copyright
© African Studies Association, 2020

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